Since 2005, El Tecolote has released an updated death toll in military deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Back then, it seemed important to account for the lives of soldiers from the U.S. Army lost in these wars.
Eight years later, while it still seems valid reporting on these deaths, the partial and arbitrary nature of the figure poses ethical dilemmas that are leading us to cease its publication.
The number we publish does not include civilian deaths, or make note of those injured physically or psychologically. Nor does it reflect the larger problem: the business of war and the U.S. military complex.
The Iraqi deaths as a result of the U.S. invasion amounted to 1.5 million by some estimates, compared to 4,500 soldiers dead, according to data from Justforeignpolicy.org.
The rate of veterans affected by post-traumatic stress disorder has skyrocketed, surpassing the rate of soldiers killed in the battlefield. Between January and June 2012 there were 154 suicides among U.S. troops—nearly one a day—while 124 were killed in combat in Afghanistan, according to the New York Times.
Eusebio Lopez, the 25-year-old Marine from Pacifica, who killed himself and two other Marines on March 21, is just the latest example.
As with the Vietnam War, the war is in our midst, in the form of mental health problems and drug addiction, etc. that veterans suffer from.
Over the last decade, the traditional concept of war, soldiers and battlefield has blurred. Operating Bases in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Yemen, Libya, Somalia, Turkey, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, Philippines and most recently Niger, are sending unmanned drones to launch missiles or identify targets for others to take charge of the killing. U-28 spy planes manned by private companies paid by the U.S. Government fly over Iran, and the U.S. military is training Syrian rebels in Jordan.
The United States is a country whose nature is closely linked to the business of war. As a new cycle of filing taxes comes to a close, we should know that currently almost half of our taxes are allocated to the military, a total of $ 1,355,000,000,000 (1.355 billion dollars) annually.
To date, 2,178 U.S. soldiers have died fighting in Afghanistan, and it is there that we will stop counting. Instead, we will publish content that promotes a less militarized society.
—Translation Chris Alias
